BYU basketball crawls to a double-overtime road win over 10 Iowa State: final score, stats, game recap

BYU basketball didn't score a point in Ames until the 13:35 mark of the first half. The Cougars totaled 29 turnovers against a highly-aggressive Cyclone defense. They battled through two overtimes and through one of basketball's most hostile environments.

By all accounts, the Cougars shouldn't have won on Tuesday night in Iowa -- but that's why you play the game.

The Cougars escaped tenth-ranked Iowa State with a final score of 88-85 in the penultimate regular season game for Kevin Young and this BYU basketball team. They leapfrog the Cyclones for the fourth spot in the Big 12 standings with only a home battle against rival Utah standing in the way of the regular season's end.

A season-defining victory and the seventh straight for what may be the hottest team in the country, this team has shown grit, resilience, and the ability to battle through even the least survivable conditions in the second half of the season.

By all considerations, the Cougars should have left the Hilton Coliseum with a much wider margin of victory, as BYU led this contest by 21 points with all the momentum a team could ask for in the second half. 3-balls were falling, the defense had the home side locked up, and even Dallin Hall -- yes, that Dallin Hall -- flushing alley-oop dunks on the fast break.

Nobody, and I mean nobody saw that coming. A career-making highlight for Dallin Hall that I'll be watching five years from now much to the confusion of my wife.

It was mass hysteria for Cougar fans, and the home team's audible groans filled the gym upon every missed Cyclone shot and every scored basket for the visiting side.

But once the 21-point difference was met, the Cyclones came roaring back with 3-pointers, a renewed sense of life on defense, and a flurry of trips to the foul stripe. Hilton was rocking, and BYU reverted back to the shell-shocked style of basketball we saw in the first 6:30 of the game. The offense stagnated and suddenly lost all ability to penetrate the Cyclones' defense.

Most possessions went something along these lines: *shuffles through paper* Ahem. BYU tries a few half-hearted screen and rolls until the shot clock winds within 10 seconds. A forced or contested shot rims out and the Cougars corral an offensive rebound. Cyclone defenders swipe ceaselessly at the recipient until inevitably claiming possession of the ball. Iowa State pushes the ball up the floor and receives a phantom foul call at the other end.

Oh, you don't believe me? I present Exhibit A:

A frustrating scene in Ames when this happens with regularity -- it felt like the Cougars couldn't keep the Cyclones off the free throw line despite the swiping arms they took on the other end. A hopeless shot attempt from Iowa State receiving a gracious foul call despite far less obstructive defense.

The Cougars escaped with the victory in this one, but this win was even more impressive for a side that had so much opposition.

Free throw shooting was critical for BYU, as well. The burden that would be in a typical game for this team may have been too great for this side in a previous game, as Iowa State knocked through 87% of their attempts at the line. The Cougars hit 80% of their looks, with Egor Demin and Richie Saunders combining for 17-17 foul shooting. In a double-overtime battle like this one, every point counts, and these players delivered on the gimmes.

A major mess that will ultimately be remembered as a victory for the Cougars. They'll need to handle business against Utah on Saturday before shifting gears to tournament mode.

More BYU Cougars News: